Stay
by Something Illusory
Summary: —1x19 DE scene as it should of went—  He sighs, taking a seat in the same position on the opposite side of her. They both lean their heads against the stone wall, listening to Stefan's labored breathing from the inside of the cell.


**This first part is mainly Stelena, but, yanno. Just get through it and you'll be rewarded with Delena 33 Enjoy, my loves! xoxo**

She had learned by now that vampires centered their lives around human blood. Smelling it. Tasting it. Controlling the urge to kill for it. She understood this and did not blame them for the instinct they had to fight to control. Honestly, though, she did not think that she would ever truly understand how strong some of them were. How some of them could wake up each morning and continue to say no to being the monster inside of them. More importantly, how Stefan did it.

Alas, all good things come to an end. He had been fighting for so long that the moment he got a taste of human blood, it sent him spiraling on an out of control frenzy. The look on his face as he tore open Amber's neck was horrifying. He was a monster; a blood thirsty demon that she never imagined she would find inside of him. But there it was. And she could not find it in herself to look away.

Stefan needed help, and the only way to do so was to knock some sense into him. She believed in Stefan. She knew that if only he'd talk to her, he would find the will to go back to fighting it. To fighting this demon…. this monster that grabbed hold of him with dark, bloody fingers.

She wandered into his bedroom now, watching him cautiously. He was different. He was angry. He was desperate. Most of all, he was unpredictable.

"You shouldn't be here." He said calmly, his face twisted into an emotion she could not quite identify clearly. She swallowed thickly, staring at the man she was in love with yet seeing someone entirely different.

"I know." She _did_ know. She shouldn't be here. She shouldn't be bothering him like this. Telling him things he didn't want to listen to or believe. He turns his back on her coldly, walking deeper into the darkness.

"Now you know."

She shakes her head and answers quickly, "That wasn't you."

He runs a hand through his hair while she stares at him, bewildered. "Oh that was absolutely me. A monster…a predator…It's who I am, Elena." He says it almost nonchalantly, as if he believes such nonsense.

She still doesn't buy it. "That's what the blood _makes_ you." He wasn't a monster. He wasn't a predator, either. He was a sensitive man with honorable intentions. He was Stefan Salvatore: the vampire that would do anything for her. He certainly wasn't the demon she had witnessed earlier that night. Definitely not.

He turns toward her, anger building inside of his chest. "The blood brings out what's inside of me and if you think any differently then you're an idiot." He spits, pacing back and forth in the bedroom. Her brow crumbles. Idiot? This wasn't Stefan. Stefan would…never…say that to her. Never.

"I know this isn't you, Stefan." She insists.

"I wanted to drain every ounce of blood from that girl's body." He looks at her now, emphasizes his words with his hand. Didn't she realize? Couldn't she be less_ stupid_, just for today?

Elena shakes her head. "No."

"It's who I am, Elena." He insists now, angerly.

"No!" she repeats again. "You can't scare me off."

He moves toward her. "Why would you risk it? Why would you come here?"

"Because I did this." She admits, for once in her life feeling completely wounded. She had done this, all of this. She woke the monster inside of him. She made it grab onto him. "This is my fault. I'm the one who made you drink the blood."

"All you did was expose me to who I really am." he snarls.

"This isn't you."

"Stop saying that!" he shouts, reaching forward and slamming a pile off books across the room. She jumps at the sudden action and feels frightened now, afraid what he might do to her. What the demon might do to her. She stares at him in disgust and yet takes a step toward him.

"Don't get any closer to me," he warns, walking in anxious circles around his bedroom.

She doesn't stop. "I'm not going to let this happen to you."

"Stop!" he demands.

"Stefan, I'm not going to give up on you! I _believe_ in you."

And just like that, he is shouting. Only this time he charges at her, gripping her shoulders tightly and shoving her backwards into the wall roughly. "Stop!" he screams into her face. She gasps, closing her eyes and waiting for an impact to her face. Or to anything, really. He punches the wall just inches away from her face.

She opens her eyes and finds him staring at her, pain and remorse taking over him. He blinks slowly, realization sinking into him deeply at what he had just done. He sees the fear and horror on her face and he whispers, "I'm so sorry.."

"It's okay." she assures, but it comes out strangled and ragged. He leans his forehead on her shoulder and she whispers again, "..it's okay.."

"I don't know what's happening to me." he explains into her in an agonizing voice. Her heart almost breaks at the sound of him sounding so helpless.

"It's okay, Stefan. Shh, shh…" she tells him, explaining to him over and over that it is okay and everything will be okay. "You're going to be okay."

Elena pulls a syringe from her pocket and lifts it behind him. Just do it. He needs this. This is for the best. You need to do it, Elena. Don't be a coward. Be brave. Be brave, and strong, like Stefan is. He's always strong. He'll get through this. Just do it.

She tells herself these things and with a sharp wrist flick, the syringe is penatrating his skin. He pulls away, choking, and then drops to the floor. The sound of footsteps attracts her attention to the doorway. Damon strolls in now, the look on his face clearly all business. He looks at her warily. "Sure you want to do this?"

She holds her tears in, feeling them ready to spill."I'm sure."

* * *

><p>Damon closes the basement cell door. She knows that tucked inside is the demonic thing that has taken over her Stefan.<p>

He turns to face her and tells her the honest truth. "There's no guarantee that this is going to work."

She shakes her head for a moment and looks him in the eyes. "It has to." He nods once, understanding. He turns to head for the stairs only to shortly turn back around and face her once again.

"Coming?"

She shakes her head and locks her gaze onto the cell door. "I'm gonna stay here." She sinks to the ground, her knees pulled tightly to her chest. She looks so vulnerable against the darkness that Damon decides that leaving her would be too much of a risk. Especially with crazy, impulsive Stefan only feet away from her.

He sighs, taking a seat in the same position on the opposite side of her. They both lean their heads against the stone wall, listening to Stefan's labored breathing from the inside of the cell. It is quiet, and Elena begins to wonder why he stays.

After a long moment she whispers, "Thank you, Damon."

He exhales quickly. "Yeah, well."

"How long do you think…before he…" she asks slowly, unable to finish her question.

He rests his gaze on her face. "Before he…gets past this? With Stefan…who knows."

She frowns but doesn't say anything else. They do not talk for several minutes, only occasionally exchanging worried and tired looks. Flashbacks of the day start rushing back to her and she wonders if Damon has been thinking about their dance as much as she had.

"Thank you." she says again.

"For what?"

She almost smiles. Almost. "Stepping in for Stefan today. Not making me look like an idiot out there."

He shrugs, leaning his head back and closing his eyes. "It was rather exciting, wasn't it?"

She nods even though she knows he won't see it. "You are a good dancer."

He smirks his famous smirk and lets out a soft laugh. "Like I haven't heard that before."

"Of course." she mumbles, rolling her eyes. Why was he so damn cocky?

He opens an eye to peek at her expression. "You're not so bad yourself."

Smugly and mockingly she replies, "Like I haven't heard that before." Playfully he bumps his leg against hers and she lets out a small giggle. "No, but really. It was actually fun."

"If you mean having to step in for my baby brother and then pulling him off of one of the contestants fun, then yeah, sure. It was wonderful." He sarcastically throws at her. She inhales sharply, wounded by his words. He hears her intake of breath and opens his eyes to look at her. "Sorry."

She shakes her head, not really accepting the apology. "This isn't who he is, Damon. No matter what he thinks."

"Elena. I know my brother."

She meets his eyes. "Do you? I know you care about him. You need to stop pretending that you don't. Are you or are you not doing this for him?"

He wants to tell her that he's doing it for Stefan, but he can't. Something inside of him tells him not to. To cover it up with falseness. Inside of him, something stirs, and looking at her now he realizes that he's doing it for her, too. Because she asked him to.

"I'm doing it because I don't like my baby brother making me look like the good guy. I drink the people blood around here. He can stick to the bunnies." He says, closing his eyes once again.

She shifts uncomfortably. "Damon."

"Elena."

"I see right through you. I know you care. It's useless to try to convince me otherwise." she insists.

"We'll see."

She stares at him, studying his features and his face. He wasn't alike Stefan and yet he wasn't exactly total opposite. The resemblance in their faces was there, you just had to look hard enough to find it. For instance, their eyebrows. Damon's were longer and darker, but they raised and crumbled together the same way Stefan's did. And their jaws. Their jaws were both defined and strong.

She'd never admit it out loud, but Damon was strikingly handsome. It nearly took her breath away as she began to fully recognize him. How his dark hair matched perfectly with the complexion of his skin. How his mysterious blue eyes were framed with thick, black lashes. How every tooth was sparkling white and straightly aligned.

"Take a picture, it will last longer." he says now. Her heart begins to beat faster as she didn't even realize that he had opened his eyes to watch her stare at him. She had been so fixed on his features that she wasn't worried about getting caught. That smirk was back on his face and she felt the need to slap it off of him.

"I was just…uh.." she tried to explain but came up rather blank.

"Oh just admit it, you were thinking about how hot I am." he winked.

She rolled her eyes. "You wish."

He doesn't say anything back, and they sit there in silence for a very long time. Eventually, he stands, and offers his hand to her.

"It's late. You should go home."

She looks to the cell door, hesitating.

Damon notices. "He'll be here tomorrow. I promise."

She nods softly and then slips her hand into his. He lifts her to his feet easily and she gains her balance.

Neither of them noticed that their hands remained in tact for a few seconds longer than necessary and it is only after she leaves that she realizes she can still feel his touch, even when his hand is no longer there.


End file.
